Gary Carter of the New York Mets looks on during batting practice before a game in the 1989 season. OTTO GREULE JR, GETTY IMAGES

Dedication ceremony

When: 11 a.m. Feb. 22

Where: Fullerton Sports Complex, Field No. 2, 500 E. Silver Pine St.

More: Following the ceremony, there will be an exhibition game featuring players from Fullerton's three Little Leagues and its PONY League.

Gary Carter, one of baseball’s all-time greats and one of the best to play the game locally, will forever be memorialized at Fullerton’s Sports Complex.

Field No. 2 at the 17.6-acre complex, considered the facility's showcase field, will officially become Gary Carter Field after a Feb. 22 dedication ceremony.

A plaque listing the Hall of Fame catcher’s accomplishments will permanently stand adjacent to the field, along with a sign above the outfield scoreboard that will read “Gary Carter Field” in red letters.

Carter’s widow, Sandy Carter, and brother, Gordon, are expected to attend the event, said John Clements of the city’s Parks and Recreation Department.

Following the ceremony, players from Fullerton’s three Little Leagues and PONY League will play an exhibition game on the field. (PONY stands for Protect Our Nation’s Youth.)

“We wanted to have the game, too, and get the kids involved,” Clements said.

Carter, who died Feb. 16, 2012 at age 57, played in West Fullerton Little League, Fullerton PONY League and at Sunny Hills High School before embarking on a 21-year Major League Baseball career.

He was an 11-time All Star and a member of the 1986 New York Mets World Championship team.

Carter always remembered his Fullerton roots.

Eight months after his July 2003 induction into MLB’s Hall of Fame, Carter came back to Sunny Hills to be honored.

"Sunny Hills and Fullerton will always be synonymous with Gary Carter," Carter said in the packed gym at the time. "As a kid growing up in Fullerton, never did I fathom that I would one day be inducted into the Hall of Fame.'"

The Lancers' baseball field is named after Carter and a painting of the baseball great hangs in the Sunny Hills gymnasium.

In 2004, Carter participated in opening-day ceremonies for West Fullerton Little League. At the event, the James Carter Memorial Field was dedicated for Carter's father, who managed in the league and had died the previous year.

Carter was again back in his hometown in 2008 when he took the job as manager of the Orange County Flyers, an independent minor league baseball team that used to play in Fullerton.

Shortly after his death, the City Council directed the Parks and Recreation staff to find a way to memorialize Carter.

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